Knight Assassin

by James Boschert

  “Aicelina, I cannot endure this for much longer,” he croaked.

  By way of response she slipped her hands down to his groin and played gently with his manhood.

  Talon put his arms around her back and held her close. He could feel the warmth of her but he also felt himself growing hard against her stomach. She smiled again, but this time it was an invitation that was unmistakable. She leaned back as though to see into his eyes. She looked a question, but then he saw a kind of decision in her expression and she nodded. He bent toward her and kissed her right breast. Aicelina gave a low moan. Then he kissed her on the mouth, enjoying the soft, pliant feel of her unresisting lips.

  Talon scooped her up in his arms and carried her to the bank. He laid her down on the tumbled clothes he had only just shed and lay down alongside her. The sun patch they lay within warmed their wet skin.

  He leaned over her and tentatively kissed her again on her slightly parted lips. She reached for him, placed both hands on either side of his head and gripped his hair lightly.

  They kissed long and deeply, holding one another in a light embrace. He drew away to then lean forward and kiss her in the hollow of her neck. She sighed and her hands moved to his back to tighten and encourage more. He began to caress her fair skin with gentle and wondering fingers, enjoying her curves and her responses to his movements. She lay quietly with her eyes half shut, seeming to be willing to abandon herself to his caresses. Her nipples became taut and she gasped when he kissed them, her eyes flying open.

  Then she laughed softly into his amused eyes. It was not long before her passion grew and she pushed his willing hand downward toward the light bush at the junction of her long legs. Talon brought her to a point of trembling ecstasy, her body undulating under the gentle ministrations of his fingers. He was enjoying the giving of pleasure to this girl who gave herself to him freely without condition.

  She gasped again and cried out, pulling him up over her. “Talon, please. I want you. Oh, yes,” she cried as they came together. They lay quietly locked in this embrace for a long moment, savoring the union and then she began to move her hips as did he. They moved together slowly, he looked into her eyes, seeing them gradually widen as she began to feel the surge within her. Suddenly, she arched her back, clasping his arms, her lips slightly parted as she began to abandon herself to the sensations growing surely within her. They moved into one another more urgently toward a climax that left Aicelina crying out as she clutched at him in the throes of her passion.

  They lay together for long moments when it was over, both reluctant to move. Talon finally rolled over onto his back and she shifted her head into the crook of his left arm, laying her head on his shoulder. A shaft of sunlight broke through the dark clouds gathering over head and warmed them as they lay together. Talon was sleepily enjoying the fresh scent of her hair when she murmured something.

  Talon half turned, “What did you say?”

  “I said that you are a very gentle lover. For a man who is such a fighter, you are truly a gentle knight.”

  Then she said something that almost made him sit up.

  “I know there is not love between us, but I wanted to give of myself. Your mother told me of the Persian Princess and since then I can see that you wear your love of another on your sleeve.”

  “I-I am sorry, Aicelina,” he stammered.

  “Do not be sorry. I enjoyed the loving; and you are a very good lover. Women of Languedoc have the right to their own bodies. We can share with whom we wish... within reason,” she added as an afterthought. She lifted her head suddenly. “You do not think ill of me for doing so?”

  He grinned at her. “I am still bemused at the wondrous gift you have given me. How can I think ill of you?”

  She nodded solemnly then, glancing up at the darkening sky, said briskly, “I could wish for more but it grows late and will rain very soon. We should go back to the fort or they will worry.”

  Talon realized reluctantly that she was right. They dressed hurriedly.

  The light was rapidly leaving the forest; the ominous darkness preceding a storm was making the glade dark and cold. Almost as he thought about the possibility there was a crack of thunder and it began to rain.

  Talon looked around for some cover and could only see a large overhang off to the side of the glade about fifty feet away through the trees where they might be able to shelter from the fury of the storm. He pointed to it and gestured that they should try to get under there.

  She gathered up her long skirts in her left hand and seized Talon’s with her other. They ran laughing in the rain toward the overhang, splashing though filling puddles of water along the way.

  They came with a rush up against the rock wall of the overhang but it provided poor shelter from the lashing rain. He looked at her; by now their clothes were almost soaked. She brushed her hair back from her face and laughed up at him. He grinned back with a rush of affection for her—not much seemed to disturb her.

  Talon released Aicelina and stood back from the rock, once again in the rain, looking around it to see if there was some better place for them. There was by now a wind blowing that lashed the tops of the trees and bushes all around. As he stood there Talon caught a glimpse of a darkness that showed momentarily in the wall of the cliff as the shrubs and small trees were waving to and fro to his right.

  He splashed over toward it, leaving Aicelina cowering under the inadequate shelter of the overhang. She must have decided that she would rather be with him as she abandoned it and skipped over to his side as he investigated the opening—for that is what it was, an entrance to some kind of low cave. He pushed through the bushes at the entrance and, taking her hand, led the way at a crouch into the dry darkness that greeted them. Abruptly the noise of the storm became muted and they crouched in the low entrance watching the pouring rain and the wind lash the forest outside.

  There was a dry, musty smell coming from behind them as though this overhang might have once been the lair of an animal. Curious, Talon turned and stared into the darkness behind him; he could see very little but what the lightning illuminated made him start. He squinted at an object lying just in front of him and moved toward it. He gingerly lifted the small bundle up to inspect it more closely. It was an old leather shoe, badly chewed by some animal, but inside it were some bones.

  Aicelina gasped and made a hurried sign of he cross over her breast when she saw it and then pointed deeper into the low depths of the cave. There were more bones scattered about with some shreds of coarse cloth still clinging to them. His eyes had now become used to the darkness and he could see farther. He felt a trickle of superstitious fear and the hairs on his forearms tingled.

  Stooping low, Talon stepped carefully over the scattered bones and saw in the back of the cave a skull lying near a small pile of rags. There were still a few strands of hair attached to it, the empty eye sockets stared back at him, and the lower jaw was nearby in two pieces. It was clear some animals had chewed on the dead person’s carcass after he or she had died.

  Talon felt the hair on his neck prickle and also made the sign of the cross, then turned to see if Aicelina was all right. She had retreated to the entrance and was watching him with fearful eyes. The natural superstition of being near a dead person was frightening even this courageous girl.

  “I don’t like it here. We should go now,” she pleaded in a whisper.

  He nodded. “This must have been a vagabond or some wanderer who died here.”

  But his curiosity was still strong. He squatted next to the skull, looking down at it, wondering how lonely a death this had to be. With no one to shrive the poor soul or act as a companion and stay in attendance while death crept up to lay his icy hand upon him, it must have been a lonely death, indeed. He glanced down to the pitiful pile of rags nearby and his attention was caught by a badly chewed leather bag lying among them. Rats had gnawed at the leather, creating a hole from which something had spilled out.

  He put his hand o
ut to touch it and realized it was something metallic. The small pile chinked as his hand disturbed it. He gathered up the frayed but heavy bag careful not to allow anything else to drop out and took it toward the opening to see more clearly what he had discovered. Aicelina leaned over his shoulder as he again squatted and poured some of the contents out onto the floor at the entrance to the cave. The storm had abated somewhat and there was some light left from the day. Coins and rings of indeterminate origin, blackened with time, fell in an untidy pile in front of them. One rolled to Aicelina’s feet.

  She picked it up and gasped. “Talon! It is money or some such thing. I have never seen so much. What's it doing here?”

  “I don't know, Aicelina, but we must get back to the fort before it's totally dark. I'll take this with me.”

  He went back into the cave and hurriedly gathered up the remaining coins scattered about and placed them back in the leather bag. He muttered a quick prayer to the ghost of the dead person and then left. He glanced out of the cave and led the way out onto the small grass swathe surrounded by trees. They walked quickly toward the stream and pool. Glancing back, Talon could see no evidence of the cave from where they stood. The undergrowth hid its secret from prying eyes once again.

  As they walked away from the stream Talon spotted in the gloom several different types of mushrooms half hidden among some grass close to an old rotten log.

  He pointed at them. “Are those edible, Aicelina?”

  “No,” she exclaimed, pointing to some. “Those are very poisonous; just one will kill an ox. Some folk dry those others over there and put them in a soup—this makes them dream. Too much and a person has bad dreams, while a small amount will make them very happy and they become fools. Look over there! A septus; do you see it? The very big brown one; we will take for the pot. They are delicious with eggs.”

  She plucked the huge mushroom and placed it in the pocket of her sodden skirts. Not wanting to let their time run out so fast, he drew her toward him. He held her for a few long moments within the circle of his arms, her head on his breast, then it was time to go. She kissed him and put her hand on his arm and they walked back to the fort, which was in a state of alarm as people had missed them and were very concerned.

  Marguerite scolded them both and told Aicelina to go get dry clothes before she turned to Talon and said in an agitated voice. “Where have you two been? We are all at odds because it is dusk and you came back so late! You of all people should know that it's dangerous to be out late in the forest. You had me so worried for you and Aicelina.”

  Talon wanted more than anything to distract this line of questioning, so he said quickly, “We were out looking for mushrooms and were caught in the storm, but look. I have something to show you.”

  He went into the darkened hall, took hold of a candle as he went and walked to one of the tables, where he let the bag drop onto the surface. It chinked noisily as it landed and a small coin rolled out of the hole in its side.

  Marguerite put her hand to her mouth. “Whatever have you found?”

  “Could this be the silver that your father was supposed to have lost, Auntie?” Aicelina asked, she had not left despite the scolding. However she did now have a blanket over her shoulders.

  Talon lifted the bag and poured the remaining contents out. A stream of blackened metallic objects chinked and clattered onto the table. He pushed them together to form a good sized pyramid.

  Marguerite called sharply to one of the housemaids to bring Sir Hughes and his brother. “Anna, come here,” she called to another, older-looking maid who came walking shakily from the other end of the hall. The old maid, bent with age, stared at the pile of coins and rings on the table.

  She gasped. “Oh, my dear Lord God save us! Where did you find those?” she asked.

  “In the forest,” Aicelina responded. “In a small cave, with a dead person’s bones nearby; we were looking for mushrooms when the storm came,” she added with a glance at Talon from under her eyebrows, who looked away, having trouble with a smile.

  Anna made the sign of the cross over her breast. “Then it's true,” she whispered. “May God have mercy on his soul.”

  “What in the Saint’s good name are you talking about, Anna?” Marguerite asked sharply.

  “My lady,” the old woman quavered, “did you not know that your father had a store of silver hidden somewhere before he died?”

  Marguerite shrugged. “It was but a rumor. No one believed it and none has ever been found... until perhaps now,” she added uncertainly.

  By this time Sir Hughes and Sir Philip, accompanied by Max and Gareth, had come into the hall to see what the excitement was about. They still wore their cloaks, damp from the rain, their boots muddy. Guillaume had also rushed in and was trying to get his hands on the pieces lying on the table.

  His mother slapped his probing hand gently to dissuade him. “Not now, Guillau’; leave them alone.”

  They all stared down at the pile on the table in awe. The light from the candle gleamed off the edges of the coins, many crudely stamped with heads and words.

  “Is this silver?” Sir Hughes asked, picking a piece up and rubbing it between thumb and forefinger.

  “It is, m’lord,” Anna said with some confidence.

  “Why do you say that, Anna?” Sir Hughes asked.

  “Do you know who the person was that we found with these?” Talon asked.

  “Frobert the swineherd, m’lord.” She looked frightened.

  “It’s all right, my dear, tell us what you know,” Marguerite said gently.

  Anna sat down heavily on the bench nearby and composed herself. They all gathered around to listen; behind them were many others who had heard the disturbance and were eager to know more.

  Anna looked at Marguerite. “M’lady, your father was a good man and careful with his money. There never was a lot to be had, but the mills were a good provider. He ran the river and the ferry well and made sure that no one cheated him. In time it became known that he had stored some silver away for the hard times. He would always help the villagers when the harvest was poor. May our saintly mother Mary bless him and take him to her bosom, for he deserved it.”

  She paused for breath, crossed herself and then continued. “But all his silver could not protect him from the plague when it came. I remember it well; the summer was cold, there was much rain, which is not at all usual here, and there were many rats. Far more than normal, they seemed to be everywhere and the men and dogs could not kill them all. They seemed to herald the plague.

  “God have mercy and forgive me, m’Lady, but when it came we were so afraid we all fled. Your father stayed, already abed with the fever. He told me to leave as he knew full well what he had. His mind was clear but his body was wracked with agony. Frobert said he would care for him as he did not fear the death. I still do not know why Frobert should stay as there was no particular bond that I know of between My Lord and the Swineherd.

  “We did not come back until months had passed, as the plague lingers on, and we knew not what had become of your father.”

  She fell silent, then continued slowly.

  “When we came back there were few left; the plague had followed many into town and field where they died like animals. There was your poor dead father still in his bed, just his bones. We gave him a decent burial, although only I and one of the field hands would pick up his remains and place them in the grave where he lies today.

  “Of Frobert there was no sign at all, so I believed that he had fled, too, and perhaps would come home one day, but after a while I thought he might have died somewhere. Indeed, he did, but he must have found the silver and took it with him. He was punished for his sins. May God have mercy on his poor soul. The plague followed him even to where you found him. He would often, in safer times, take the swine into the forest to feed them. He knew the forest right well.”

  Talon looked at Aicelina, who stared back with frightened eyes.

  “You mean he
died of the plague, Anna?” he asked slowly.

  “I cannot think of what else would have slain him. In those days men stayed clear of other men; they did not dare to even rob them there was such fear in the land.”

  Talon looked down at his hands and then again at Aicelina. “Could the plague still be on the bones?” he asked.

  “That I know not, m’lord. It has been several years since it left us.”

  Talon turned to his mother. “I want to have a bath immediately, and then Aicelina’s and my clothes should be burned. I have touched the bones and this bag belonged to the swineherd. I was taught that if there is disease around, then to contain it one must clean oneself and burn the clothes.”

  He noticed that everyone had drawn back from him and mentally shrugged. So be it; he was now in the hands of God.

  His mother, not lacking in courage, chased everyone out of the hall except Talon and Aicelina and bade the servants to go and get hot water prepared.

  Later, a well-scrubbed Talon in new clean clothes watched as the old ones were burnt along with Aicelina’s dress. They stood together, somehow brought even closer by the situation they found themselves in.

  The silver was cleaned by the reluctant servants who were afraid that something from the dead swineherd might linger on the silver as a curse; yet it was examined with awe by Sir Hughes and his family. Talon realized his father was now reasonably wealthy. He didn't know it, but he already was even before Talon found the silver. Talon had never revealed how much gold he personally possessed. He had intended to disclose his secret when the time was right, but the opportunity had not as yet presented itself.